


Hello Again

by LeFay_Strent



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: M/M, Spiders, moxiety - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-18
Updated: 2019-06-18
Packaged: 2020-05-13 20:35:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19258729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeFay_Strent/pseuds/LeFay_Strent
Summary: Humans trespassed into the church occasionally. Some during the day, most of them at night.Never did humans come two nights in a row.(Sequel to "Hello Mr. Spider")





	Hello Again

Patton thinks the first time is merely a fluke.

Virgil nearly died. Patton’s been there before. He’s known the gripping despair you experience one heartbeat away from the end, realizing just how much you want to be alive. It shakes you. That kind of fear . . . humans and creatures like himself weren’t so different in that regard.

Virgil’s reaction to his monstrous form, Patton chalks it up to be a side-effect of his brush with death. Maybe he’d been so happy to survive. Perhaps grateful in the moment? Knowing that without Patton there, it could have ended terribly . . .

Patton only considers this long after Virgil has left. In the moment, Virgil’s curiosity and kindness—they had made Patton so incredibly _happy_.

“It’s okay, Patton,” he had said, as Patton was the one cowering in fear.

And that just doesn’t make sense.

“They hate you.”

That’s what his mother had told Patton while she raised him. It was an often occurrence, sitting with her on a web of silk, her fingers combing through his errant curls.

“They hate you,” she’d say, and it was the most compassionate thing she’d ever tell him.

Humans feared what they couldn’t understand.

They screamed and pleaded for their lives before confirming if they were in any danger at all.

They didn’t want to understand. They were scared and hated it.

They had hated his mother to death.

. . . and to be honest, she had hated plenty of them too.

But mother isn’t here anymore, and Patton doesn’t know how to turn hate into a weapon.

So when Virgil had wandered into his den, he had hidden.

From the safety of the rafters Patton watched him down below. Patton never intended to show himself—he’d learned better long ago. But the little human had spooked, and he fell, and Patton had—he’d _never_ wanted anyone to hurt. There’d been enough of all that. More than enough.

That’s why he didn’t think. He jumped down and caught Virgil before the unforgiving floor could.

Whatever would happen after . . . Patton would let it. But right then, holding that scared person in his arms, he wanted to make one less person afraid.

And Virgil had _let him_. Sure, he hadn’t realized yet what Patton really was, but it didn’t matter at the time. He had clung to Patton, trembling in fright, and for once in Patton’s godforsaken life he could actually do something about it.

All those times a human caught a glimpse of him.

All those times they had shuddered in disgust or cried in terror.

All those times Patton _ached_ to just take them in his arms and soothe them, to show them that they didn’t need to be scared.

Patton currently sits in the abandoned church he has come to call home. Virgil had left hours ago along with the night. Daylight streams inside steadily, dragon flies racing through the warm rays.

And Patton just kinda sits there staring at his hands. He can’t stop thinking about how it felt to hold Virgil in his arms, or remembering the precise sensation of his fingertips grazing Virgil’s forehead as he brushed his bangs back. His shoulders even still tingle with the memory of how Virgil’s hands clenched tight there.

Patton had held him and it didn’t frighten him. He didn’t scream and lash out. No, he asked for Patton’s name.

Like Patton was a person, not a thing.

Patton grins giddily as he wraps all of his arms around himself in a hug. He remembers the excited light in Virgil’s eyes as they sat and talked for ages. The way he’d asked Patton to show him his fangs. How he’d let out a soft gasp when Patton eventually obliged.

“That’s so cool,” Virgil had whispered in awe. Patton didn’t think he imagined the way he pressed his fists into his knees, like he was physically restraining himself from getting up and taking a closer look.

Patton will cherish the memory. Surely the situation has fully caught up to Virgil now and he will stay away from the church.

But Patton will remember that night and how—for a moment—he proved his mother wrong.

* * *

 Humans trespassed into the church occasionally. Some during the day, most of them at night.

Never did humans come two nights in a row.

Patton hears the hefty front doors open. The wood creaks and groans, the sound traveling effortlessly all the way into the sanctuary. It’s routine for him by now to retreat at the first sign of intrusion. He climbs up to his favored hiding spot up in the rafters.

He doesn’t have to wait long. Beams from a flashlight flicker into view. Boots clomp against tile only to muffle when they meet the carpeted entrance to the sanctuary. A figure struts inside, slowing down as they go to take in the room. They halt near the middle where the moon’s light trickles through the gaping hole in the ceiling.

“Patton?”

Patton peeks out, completely flabbergasted at the use of his name. It has to be Virgil. Who else knows his name? But why is he here? Why would he— 

The excitement overwhelms Patton and he’s jumping down before he knows it, urged on by the gleeful mantra in his head shouting, “He came back! He came back!”

Virgil flinches when Patton’s heavy body drops onto the landing of the second floor. His flashlight captures Patton’s crawling descent down to the ground level.

_They hate you._

Patton stops dead. Virgil looks the same as he did last night. Wary maybe, but he’s not backing away or anything like that.

All the same, the reality of the situation catches up with Patton, and he realizes that this shouldn’t be happening. Humans don’t just warm up to him, and they certainly don’t come back after learning of his existence the first time.

Or if they do, they bring more people. People with guns and the will to use them.

Patton wrings his hands nervously, his six eyes darting around to make sure that Virgil is truly here alone. He can’t hear anything alarming from outside either, but does that mean anything really?

“So it wasn’t a dream,” Virgil speaks, and Patton is confused at first before understanding that it’s mostly a statement to himself. Virgil runs a hand back through his hair, blowing out a breath. “Or hallucination. I’m not crazy. Go me, I guess.”

“You came back,” Patton says, unable to hide the disbelief in his voice. He takes a couple of cautious steps towards the human.

Virgil smiles wryly. “I did say I would.”

Patton comes closer. Virgil doesn’t move except to tilt his head back to keep looking up at him; although, his eyes do glance quickly at Patton’s legs a few times, as if captivated by the way he moves them.

“I didn’t expect you to,” Patton admits softly. He bends his legs to rest his body on the ground. That way Virgil doesn’t have to strain his neck.

Patton expects Virgil to react in a number of ways. He doesn’t guess that Virgil will nod like he understands or stare down as he scuffs his shoe across the floor in thought. But that’s what he does and he says in the same tone of voice, “I didn’t expect you to be real, but here we are.”

Patton’s head leans to the side, his eyes peering unblinkingly at Virgil. It occurs to Patton that Virgil might be nervous too and not from any kind of malicious means.

He must have been staring too long because Virgil starts rambling. “Like, I know last night happened, but I didn’t _know_ , ya know? Because driders don’t exist. I mean, you do. But it’s one of those kinds of creatures that no one has ever thought was real? Not like Big Foot or Nessie. So I went home last night and somehow fell asleep and woke up like, ‘huh, did that really happen or did I dream it all up?’ But I couldn’t find my flashlight, which I remembered I lost in the fall, so that was kinda like proof, yeah? So now I’m stuck using my phone’s light and—do you know what phones are? Is that rude to ask? I’m not used to meeting mythical creatures—um, I should really stop talking right now.”

Virgil ends his speech by shoving his phone in his pocket and leaving his hands in there. His shoulders hike up to his ears defensively. He’s suddenly lost the confidence to look up at Patton.

Patton remembers what it was like to hold Virgil in his arms and shush his fright with steady assurances. He feels the ache to do that again but thinks the better of it. He has no idea how Virgil would react to Patton trying to hug him.

“The flashlight . . . it broke,” is all Patton can say.

“What?”

“Your flashlight. It uh, I found it. It’s broken.”

“Oh . . .”

“Yeah . . . What’s a drider?”

Virgil finally meets his eyes again. “. . . uh . . . you?”

“Me?”

“Well . . . _you know_ ,” Virgil says and frustratingly gestures at him in a way that implies Patton should be catching on right now. Patton’s only drawing a blank though. “That’s what you’re called. Spider-people. Half human, half spider? That’s you.”

“Wait, there’s a name for me?” Patton asks, eyes going wide. The palms of two of his hands are pressed against his cheeks, unable to contain his wonder. “My kind I mean? Humans have a name for it?”

“You don’t?” Virgil counters.

Patton shakes his head. “We’re spiders.”

“Well you’re not _just_ a spider,” Virgil says before he freezes. “Wait, ‘we’? ‘We’ as in there are more like you?”

Patton giggles. “Of course, silly! I had to have had parents at least. How else would I be here?”

Virgil falters and raises his hands as he lists, “Uh . . . I guess a big spider . . . and then a human . . .” He brings the hands together, but the meaning is lost on Patton. Virgil immediately grows uncomfortable before Patton can ask. He waves his hands to dispel whatever idea he was going for. “Ya know what? Never mind. Let’s not go there.”

“So humans call us driders?” Patton asks, easily moving on with the conversation. “I had thought that most of them didn’t know we exist. We’re pretty good at hiding. But if humans have a name for us, that means more humans know about us, right?”

“Not necessarily.” Virgil lets himself sink down to the ground, assuming a cross-legged position. “You’re pretty much a fantasy creature to . . . well, everyone outside this room, I guess. But there’s a lot of made up lore about half-human, half-creature species out there. If you’re real, I’m guessing at least some of it had to have come from an experience with the real thing, but all the info that’s out there about them is considered fiction. Drider is one name you’d call what you are, but I bet a lot of people don’t even know that much.”

“I see . . .” Patton takes in all the new information thoughtfully. He folds his hands together. “I don’t think I’ve ever met another spider who refers to themselves by that. Though, to be honest, I haven’t met all that many. We’re fairly reclusive . . . for obvious reasons.”

“. . . how many do you think are out there?”

Patton glances at Virgil in consideration. He finds nothing more than the same open-curious expression he saw all of last night.

Patton shrugs. “More than you’d think, but less than what should be.”

“Okay, I think I understand why people hate it when I’m vague,” Virgil mutters.

Patton grins sheepishly. “Sorry kiddo. For most of my life I’ve tried my best to stay hidden. They’ve done the same. I’ve met some others like me over the years, and it was nice, but my mother always said large numbers are dangerous, so it never lasted for long. Oh, I’ve met others who weren’t spiders though! Like the one Spring we spent by a beach! There was a really nice fish lady and her family who lived there. Oh, and I met a snake one time! He didn’t really like me much . . . But I met him! Does that count?”

“Sure,” Virgil says, mouth twitching into a smile.

They go on like that for hours, sitting and talking and filling up the sanctuary with noise.

Bit by bit, that voice in the back of his head that sounds like his mother chips away.

And when Virgil begins yawning too frequently to ignore and he takes his leave, giving a tired, “See ya later, Pat.”

Patton actually believes him.


End file.
